Needed: clear floral water beads, balls or pearls. (our dollar store had some in the craft area)Large baggie of waterFood coloringWhite sheet of paperBefore hand put absorbent polymer balls into baggie with enough water to cover them so appears to only have water in the bag.Start by asking children what is in the bag. (they will answer water)Ask them what they would think if you told them you had a bag of balls? (listen to responses)Set aside bag and read John 20: 24-29Point out that Jesus wanted Thomas to believe because of what Jesus had told him when He was with Thomas, plus the testimony of his friends who wouldn’t make this up.Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”Ask, “Have any of you ever felt or seen God?” (will answer No)It takes faith to believe in God.Are there any other things you believe in that you can’t see? (air, gravity….)Continue: We cannot see air, but we can sometimes feel it and can see the results of it moving things around us.It takes faith to believe in God, yet, at times we can feel Him. Have any of you ever prayed when you were afraid and then felt peace? That was God letting you feel that He is with you. We can also see God in His creation, knowing He spoke all the details into being. And we can strengthen our faith by listening to the testimony of people we know wouldn’t lie to us. Back to our first verse John 20:29b “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” We are those who believe in Jesus even though we haven’t seen Him face to face and Jesus says we are blessed. Hebrews 6:18a “God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie,”Continue: So if God can not lie and faith is being certain of what we do not see, what would you say if God told you this was a bag of balls? (most will give positive response and believe)Ask: So would you have faith in this bag? No. The water? No. The balls? No. In What? God. Because God cannot lie we can believe everything He tells us in His word even if it doesn’t look like it is true. We can put our faith in God and know He is Truth.Declare that, this is a bag of balls. Would it be easier to believe if you could feel the balls? Allow children to squeeze and feel the balls in the water. Would it be even better if you could see the balls? Add food coloring to water and lay bag down on white paper, balls will be visible. Wrap up: Now like Thomas you have felt and seen so you believe. At times God will allow us to see and feel His moving around us, yet much of the time believing God and His Word takes faith. And faith requires believing what God tells us, not just what we see, because we know He cannot lie.

This may have been a better pre-Christmas blog, but I was still working through my own struggles and I wanted to be honest, not just saying the words, so it had to wait until now.Recently at a meeting a young mom was kind of beat up over the fact that her family celebrated Christmas with Santa. An older woman was concerned this young mom may never come back; although she thought the young mom was really thinking about what was shared. This older woman was going to call this young mom just to make sure she was ok. Adding my two cents, I encouraged her to remind the young mom that it was up to her husband how the family celebrated. As a wife, we can bring new ideas and challenge old ways, but in the end our husband gets to make the call.That was easy for me to say and to see until I hit my own bump in the road.It was a beautiful blog entry that sent me whirling. The family I read about did devotions every night, read the prophecies of Jesus’ coming and sang songs together. Instead of presents for Christmas they gave to the needy. They bought chickens and goats. Another family told us of how they spend Christmas Eve in their barn as a reminder of Jesus humble beginning. That was all it took to stir discontent and perhaps even a little disrespect for my husband. Amidst feeling extremely unspiritual, I also started disliking “our” way of doing Christmas. We sat down as a family to watch a silly Christmas movie and I couldn’t even giggle, it felt so wrong.After the evening was over I laid in bed crying out to the Lord to help me find joy and balance.His answer…“To obey is better than sacrifice.” (I Samuel 15:22b)Being a grumpy, stuffy, sacrificing martyr was not what God called me to. To obey my husband and promote joy and unity in our house was definitely part of my role in life. I needed to stop comparing and embrace our traditions. It would require thinking on that which is good, right and pleasing in every situation.Our Christmas was great! There were still a couple of times I had to remind myself to promote joy and unity when I would have preferred to be doing something differently. There is no doubt that Momma can dampen the mood with just a little bit of discontent, so I chose to jump in with both feet, with a smile on my face and love in my heart. Obeying my husband by making Christmas what he wanted created warm memories for the whole family and extended family too. The only real sacrifice that was needed was to lay down the inferiority I was feeling from comparing our family to others.

Isaiah 53“Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of m people he was stricken.He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.Yet, it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied, by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."

As posted at Visionary Womanhood earlier this week:Luke 2: 4 “So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.”The reason Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem at the time of Jesus birth was because they had a linage that traced back to King David. Their heritage affected their life.This idea caused me to start asking a few questions about my husband’s Christian heritage. After asking a few clarifying questions of our relatives, I have decided Todd has a wonderful Christian heritage that includes, Billy Sunday and Nate Saint—yes, I am name dropping.It starts with his great Grandfather, Andrew Jackson Smith, on his mother’s side. He was a rough man, known for a quick temper and not afraid to fight.Back when Grandpa was a boy, Billy Sunday came through Iowa. Andrew Jackson and his brothers, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson (this is for real), decided to go to the tent meeting to break it up.Before they got around to their disrupting, they found themselves listening. During this unexpected interest, God spoke to Grandpa asking him to become a follower. Andrew Jackson refused. He told God he would follow Him when he was forty, but he wanted to have fun first.Somewhere in Grandpa’s fortieth year he found himself dying in a doctor’s office. He had been dragged behind a team of horses and had developed blood poisoning from manure being scrubbed into his raw flesh during the episode. As he lay in his weakened state, God spoke again, “Remember what you promised?” “Yes,” Grandpa answered, “I remember and if I live, I will keep that promise.”The story says he went home well the very next day.Grandpa packed up his family the following Sunday and headed to church. The promise he made, affected his life. His roughness didn’t totally leave him; now he was rough and tough for Jesus. He claimed he had to speak up, so he did.All the neighbors were aware of the change too. It was obvious since at 8 p.m. every evening Grandpa would pray with a loud voice out an open window. As odd as this may sound, it was because of this practice that the “beer distributor” neighbor was saved shortly before Grandpa’s death.From this one man I found record of at least twenty preachers or missionaries. That number does not show the faithful farmers, teachers, nurses and carpenters. Another twenty to thirty served faithfully in their communities and churches.Todd’s Grandparents, P.K. and Lucille Myhre (Andrew Jackson Smith’s daughter), were two of these missionaries. P.K. built transmitters for HCJB a Christian radio station in Ecuador. They served alongside Nate Saint, who took Todd’s Grandfather on a flight over the jungle where the Huaorani settlement was. Before the tragedy that took Nate’s life, grandma served with Nate’s wife as a teacher in a local school.Todd’s parents were also missionaries. They lived in the United Arab Emirates for ten years. Their ministry continues here in the states by reaching out to those others overlook.Now, my Christian heritage is short. My mom became a believer when I was around twelve years old. I surrendered my heart five years later at seventeen. So, my Christian heritage is just beginning, but what potential it has.Registering in Bethlehem may not be a part of our families Christmas this year, since there isn’t a decree and we are not from the lineage of David. Yet, I will pray that our heritage does affect future generations. By pointing our children to Christ, we can look forward to see how God will use them. Todd and my actions at present will be fueled with the hope that in a few generations our lineage will be full of Matthews, Marks, Marys, Marthas, Peters, Pauls, Esthers, and Saras. Merry Christmas!

I have a friend that has a son that struggles with anger. It is an unpredictable trait. What he can handle fine one day, may be the very thing to push him into complete lack of self-control the next. This child worries his parents. They feel at such a loss, like they don’t even know the boy who surfaces when he is frustrated or angry. The mom blames herself. She is very quick to share her own short comings and bouts of anger. If only she didn’t ever lose her temper, she is convinced her son would not have this battle to deal with.Mutually this mom and I know another mother with ten children. One of her adult sons has stated that he does not remember his mom ever raising her voice and only remembers her showing her frustration one time. WHAT?! WOW!!This mother of ten also had a wild child son that was easily angered. His younger years were a roller coaster of unpredictable behavior. It was difficult to know what would set him off, so situations were constantly catching them by surprise. This very blessed son’s parents continued guiding and correcting him. Even when it appeared their attempts were in vain, they continued, believing God was working where they could not see.Yes, this story has a very happy ending. This mother says that when people that knew this boy as a child see him now, they cannot believe he is the same person. This testimony has brought hope to the first mom mentioned above. Her son is still young and they may have years of training ahead of them, but there is hope! As far as blaming herself, we must always evaluate how our example is affecting our children; yet, I think this mom is assuming too much blame. Carrying all the blame is a burden too heavy for anyone to carry. God is bigger than our short comings and as long as we are confessing our sin and growing ourselves, then our children too will forgive our mistakes.As one of my favorite verses to quote says, Galations 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” The fruit of my garden is random in its harvest time. Some things like radishes pop up in a matter of weeks. The majority of the produce takes a full growing season to be ready to gather. Still there are a few crops that we had to wait two years before we could enjoy their flavors. Of those we had to wait for they just happen to be Todd’s and my favorite things. His was rhubarb and mine was raspberries. Were they worth the wait? Absolutely.One last gardening point, even though we could start to pick our favorite fruits in two years, we were still not “reaping a harvest”, we were tasting a sampling of what was to come. It will take several more years before our harvest is plentiful.Do not grow weary mom in your perseverance, repetition, or seeking of wisdom. Press on by keeping your eyes on the harvest; knowing the Master Gardener, God Himself, is on your side. As you plant, water and weed….He will make the plants grow!

“You only get what you receive.”Think about that for a second.What better time of year to ponder this than during this gift giving time of year. Let’s list some options we have when another gives a gift:· Refuse the gift. “No, really I can’t take that.”· Take it home and forget to open it. · Open it and then throw it away.· Observe the gift from afar and assume it is for someone else.· Receive it. “Thank you so much!”I see three applications here.First, choose to receive every gift given you this year. No matter what the gift is, it has come from someone that spent time and money to remember and love you. Receive the love.Secondly, as believers, God has given us His Spirit that gives us gifts every day. The fruit of the Spirit is ours if we receive it. Receive the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness….Lastly, if you are not yet a follower of Christ, then it is time to receive the greatest gift ever given, Jesus! Admit your need, recognize the Savior and invite Him to direct your life. Receive deliverance and hope for eternity.

Last night two of our daughters did a long evening of babysitting. The parents had a Christmas party to attend, so the girls knew it would be a late night. The almost three year old went to bed as planned, but the teething, almost one year old couldn’t settle down. The girls wrestled with him until 11 p.m. when he finally gave in to his exhaustion.Listening to my girls retell of their evening brought back memories of the sleep troubles we had with our first child.By the time we had our first child, we were eager to try all we had learned with her. As a newborn we wanted to get her on a predictable schedule. We used the sleep, eat and wake time principle we had learned about in Baby Wise. Things did not go smoothly; there was a lot of crying. Fortunately, this was our first child and we were convinced she was perfect. It was my mother who pointed out that she was not a happy baby.In hind sight what happened was we pushed to follow the letter of the plan. We lived by the clock, not leaving room for our baby to need flexibility. This clock watching led to over stimulating our baby in attempt to keep her awake longer. Her being overtired caused our bundle to be unable to settle down when we wanted her to sleep. Thankfully with the following children we realized the order of the schedule worked for us, but our children needed more sleep. Instead of keeping them up for long wake times, we laid them down at their first signs of being tired and wow, what a difference.After our children were out of naps and early bedtimes, someone gave me a book called: Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. The premise of this book is that in general children need more sleep vs. less. When babies fuss and act like they don’t want to sleep, they probably needed to go to sleep earlier, not later. Admittedly, there is no cure all for miserable, teething babies; they will almost always experience some loss of sleep.But, if you are struggling with general sleep issues, try earlier sleep times.For more detailed ideas for specific age groups, even up through adolescence, perhaps a look at Marc Weissbluth’s book would be a good place to begin. Happy sleeping.

Little four years old Junior is asked to pick up his toys in the family room. He begins the task, but shortly starts grumbling that he can’t, it is too much. Mom feels bad to make him do something that is too hard for him, so she jumps in to help, while speaking words of comfort, “I’ll help you, honey, we can do this together.” Then husband steps over by wife and states, “He is pulling your chain. He can pick up his toys without your help.” To which the wife responds, “Really?!” Proverbs 26: 24-25 “A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but in his heart he harbors deceit. Though his speech is charming, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart.”I do not know what these seven abominations are, but a child will try to deceive a parent to get out of a task they don’t want to do. Actually, I am often surprised at how much effort children will put into avoiding work. It is up to us not to reward their efforts.Proverbs 29: 12 “If a ruler listens to lies, all his officials become wicked.” If one child gets away with making excuses to get out of obeying, then any other children within hearing will think that looks like a good idea too. Giving into this manipulation is the way a child becomes spoiled.Proverbs 29:21 “If a man pampers his servant from youth, he will bring grief in the end.”“I’m tired”, “That’s too hard”, “I’m so hungry”, “It’s too cold out”, “I need a drink” or “I need to sit I’m too hot” are all reasons children give to get out of work. How do we know if it is the truth?Often we will not know. How we can keep from having our chain pulled, is to be the one calling the shots and not allowing the child to think they are the boss. In a situation where a child is saying they need to quit because of any of a number of reasons, give them a solid finishing point. In other words, extend the task just a little longer than their excuse, so mom or dad are the one determining when they are finished. If helping in the kitchen and the child becomes bored with making cookies, tell the child, “No fussing, you may leave after the dough is mixed and you help me put the dishes in the dishwasher.” That direction puts the parent back in charge and gives the child clear understanding of what is expected of them. When little Suzie claims she cannot sweep the floor anymore because she is soo thirsty, Mom can guide Suzie. Perhaps Mom wants her to finish the task completely, or Mom wants to break the task in half, or Mom wants to just have Suzie get a little more sweeping done before getting some refreshment. It is up to the parent to decide, which is key, when Suzie should get a drink; it is not up to Suzie to demand that she get it right now.Another way to keep a child from pulling our chain is to set very clear guidelines before starting a task. “Honey, I want you to come help me in the garden for one half an hour.” The task has been clarified. Excuses may come, but if one half an hour has not passed then the excuses are not valid. Once the time has elapsed, then the child can be allowed to do other things. The main way to avoid having our chains pulled as parents is to remember we are the parent and to not allow our child to dictate what they can or cannot do.Proverbs 13: 1 “A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a mocker dos not listen to rebuke.”I like the way the Message interprets this verse,“Intelligent children listen to their parents; foolish children do their own thing.”

Yesterday my youngest had a bit of a scary incident. After getting cold playing outside she came in to warm up. Unfortunately, she had left her sled where she had been playing, so I asked her to go get it. The girls also were told to each bring in a load of wood. So this little beauty grabbed the closest jacket to the door, which was her Dad’s, along with slipping on his very oversized boots without any socks. After she brought in wood she hiked to where her sled was, expecting to just grab it and head back into the warmth.Unfortunately, the sled had blown part way down a heavily wooded hill. After trying to reach the sled with a stick in vain, she had to slide down the hill and throw the sled back up to level ground. Only one problem, with all those oversized clothes on, there was no way this peanut was going to get up the hill herself. After several minutes (we are guessing around ten) she decided she had to take her boots off and climb up bare footed. This worked, but when I went looking for her, she was almost to the house and crying in fear and pain.My heart hurt for her. Quickly she was whisked into the warmth and comforted. Later that evening when I relayed the story to my husband, he immediately asked if I had informed her how dangerous her foolishness was. No, I had discussed it a little, but I had not told her how she could have gotten frost bite and that she should never go out without socks on.Todd pulled this child aside and pointed out some of the dangers she could have brought on herself. He gave her a game plan for dealing with the unexpected in the winter. Namely, she was told of the importance of being dressed appropriately. Her dad also gave her options for when she is stuck that do not include taking clothes off. In the midst of heavy emotion I was unable to guide my daughter for the future. My mother’s heart comforted and met her immediate needs. Later, my husband brought his strength of preparing her for the future, so this never happens again. Thank you Lord, for this balance, for allowing us to both comfort and guide our daughter.

ESP Character Training is now available in e-book form for $8.99 on Amazon. Seeing as I am a mom just like all of you, promotion is not my strength nor where I have time or energy to spend. With that being said, I would appreciate any positive reviews any of you would be willing to post on Amazon. Thank you!